boost

Think of the word boost as meaning "help up." Maybe you need a boost getting over a fence (hmm — are you sneaking in or sneaking out?), or maybe you are feeling low and need to boost your spirits — chocolate, anyone?

Sometimes words appear that really don't have any clear origins. Boost is one of those words, but it's a fun word, and it's thought that maybe it has some connection to boose, a Scots dialect word that carries the idea of a push. A slang meaning of the word is to sneakily steal, like shoplifting. You gave your cousin a boost into the window, not knowing he was planning on boosting some sneakers.

Definitions of boost
  1. verb
    increase
    synonyms: hike, hike up
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    type of:
    bring up, elevate, get up, lift, raise
    raise from a lower to a higher position
  2. verb
    increase or raise
    “boost the voltage in an electrical circuit”
    synonyms: advance, supercharge
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    type of:
    increase
    make bigger or more
  3. verb
    push or shove upward, as if from below or behind
    “The singer had to be boosted onto the stage by a special contraption”
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    type of:
    thrust
    push forcefully
  4. verb
    give a boost to; be beneficial to
    “The tax cut will boost the economy”
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    type of:
    increase
    make bigger or more
  5. verb
    contribute to the progress or growth of
    synonyms: advance, encourage, further, promote
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    types:
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    connive at, wink at
    give one's silent approval to
    foster, further
    promote the growth of
    spur
    incite or stimulate
    help
    contribute to the furtherance of
    carry
    take further or advance
    feed
    support or promote
    conduce, contribute, lead
    be conducive to
    type of:
    back up, support
    give moral or psychological support, aid, or courage to
  6. noun
    an increase in cost
    synonyms: cost increase, hike, rise
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    type of:
    increase, increment
    the amount by which something increases
  7. noun
    the act of giving a push
    “he gave her a boost over the fence”
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    type of:
    push, pushing
    the act of applying force in order to move something away
  8. noun
    the act of giving hope or support to someone
    synonyms: encouragement
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    types:
    morale booster, morale building
    anything that serves to increase morale
    type of:
    aid, assist, assistance, help
    the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
Word Family